


in five years time

by lifeinabeautifullight



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Sanvers Secret Valentine 2019, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 08:09:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17783741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lifeinabeautifullight/pseuds/lifeinabeautifullight
Summary: The first Valentine’s Day Alex spends with Maggie...and the five Valentine’s Days after it.





	in five years time

**Author's Note:**

  * For [damndanvers](https://archiveofourown.org/users/damndanvers/gifts).



> happy valentine's day, lauren!

Valentine’s Day **2017**.

The day itself had been one she’d rather forget. She’d planned for it to be grand, a tailor-made day for her girlfriend with Scotch, a little bonsai tree and, of course, tiramisu. Alex had even bought lingerie for the evening to make things that little bit extra special.

It’d all been for nothing.

Alex should’ve listened and she should’ve respected Maggie’s wishes. Every day spent together was already beyond special as it was; they didn’t need, as Maggie had put it, _a manufactured holiday_ to show that they cared. Instead Alex had pushed, and Maggie had stormed out of the apartment, tears in her eyes, as painful memories, her childhood trauma, were dug up.

And it was all Alex’s fault.

If things had ended there, she would’ve understood. Respect should be the very foundation that a relationship was built on and yet, there she was, ignoring numerous warnings and doing exactly what Maggie had told her not to do.

Maggie, however, didn’t end things.

Flashforward a day or so and they were cuddling in bed, and Maggie was letting Alex in. ‘I didn’t really know her all that well, she and my father weren’t exactly close, but she was all I had and, thankfully, she didn’t even hesitate.’

‘She sounds like a good person.’

‘She’s the best,’ Maggie smiles.

‘Do you still see her often?’

‘Not really, about once a year if we’re lucky. With our respective careers and locations, it’s not exactly convenient, but I call her every week and she’s one of the two people that I text every day.’

‘Who’s the other?’ Alex asks, knowing the answer.

‘This girl called Alex. She’s pretty cool but she’s also annoying as she always sends three messages instead of one.’

‘It’s better than writing essays like you.’

‘Debatable.’

Alex laughs. ‘What does she do, your aunt?’

‘She’s a trauma nurse.’

Another notoriously unsociable occupation. ‘So crazy hours.’

‘Yeah. And she’d usually be working nights so I never really saw her all that much,’ Maggie explains. ‘But yeah...she’s a great person, and I definitely think you two would get along.’

‘I hope we do.’ After all, anyone that was important to Maggie was important to her too, especially someone with a heart so big that she’d taken in a teenager without a second’s hesitation. ‘I want to meet her.’

‘I want you to too,’ Maggie smiles. ‘Anyway, that’s quite enough about my depressing relationship with St Valentine. What about you? What have your past February 14ths been like? Better than mine, I hope.’

‘Well…’ She doesn’t know where to start as there’s not really anywhere _to start_. ‘They’ve been...non-existent.’

Maggie looks at her without a single ounce of judgement. ‘And that’s perfectly normal.’

And Alex is grateful for that assurance, as she always was. ‘I did celebrate it once, way back in high school.’ With Kyle, a kid from her history class whom she dated for all of two weeks. Besides that, every other time that day rolled around, she’d been single which was, no doubt, why her mother had continued to mail her a card every year. ‘We went to _In N’ Out_ ,’ she says, laughing. ‘Romantic, right?’

‘I don’t know, I think anywhere can be romantic.’

Alex arches a brow. ‘Says you, the woman who rented out an entire ballroom?’

Maggie shrugs: ‘And it was a whole of a lot easier than trying to book a table at short notice at this time of the year. But, yeah, I do think anywhere can be romantic, so long as the company is good.’ She shifts so she can prop herself up with an elbow. ‘We should test this theory. Next year we go to _In N’ Out_.’

Hearing the phrase _next year_ gives Alex butterflies. ‘Do we dress up?’

‘Depends. Did you dress up back then?’

‘Does blue glitter eyeshadow count?’ She internally grimaces at the memory.

‘Oh my god, seriously? How old were you?’’

‘Thirteen.’

‘Wow,’ Maggie chuckles.

‘Hey, it was 2002, every teenager made questionable makeup choices. Unlike now with all these ten year olds that know how to apply makeup better than me.’

‘You’re beautiful the way that you are, you don’t need makeup.’

The sincerity of those words also gave Alex butterflies and she blushes, her natural instinct leading her to deflect. ‘What about you? What were you doing in the back then?’

‘Smoking.’

‘Rebel.’

‘Hardly, I hated it and only did it ‘cause my friends did. Quitting was easy.’ The softness of her expression dissipates a little. ‘The last time I was in a relationship on Valentine’s Day was six years ago. The girl I was with didn’t really care for the _rampant commercialism_ of the day so we never celebrated it so it was fine.’

Alex has to say it. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘For?’

‘Essentially forcing you into celebrating the day. And if my sister said anything to you about it too then I’m sorry.’ She knew their paths had crossed shortly before Maggie had made the grand gesture and she wouldn’t be surprised if it was because Kara had said something. ‘That’s my fault, I shouldn’t have told her.’

‘It’s okay--.’

‘It’s not okay if you’re not okay with it.’

‘But I am,’ Maggie insists. ‘I meant what I said earlier. Things have changed, and I have this amazing woman in my life that I want to celebrate this day with.’

‘Are you sure?’

Maggie squeezes Alex’s hand. ‘Absolutely. You make happy and, yes, it’s still totally a manufactured holiday but, for you, I want to buy into that, to spoil you.’ She smiles. ‘Which is exactly why I’m taking you to In N’ Out next year.’

*

**2018**

This Valentine’s Day is the hardest day of Alex’s life.

That was to be expected.

As hard as the day that she’d uttered those fateful words, _we can’t be together_ , was, the days that followed were even harder as she wrestled with the _what ifs_ and the _she should be heres_.

Christmas was hell.

New Year, with no midnight kiss and no guarantee of anything to look forward to in the coming year, was bleak.

And Valentine’s Day, spent in an empty apartment, eating leftover pizza from the night before when she should’ve been eating _In N’ Out_ with the woman who should’ve been her wife was...there was no nice way to put it, it was just fucking awful.

That night she comes the closest she’s ever been to hitting speed dial. For the longest time, her finger hovers and twitches over the name that used to have a little heart beside it. The phone is in her right hand, liquid courage in the other but it's still not enough, she still can't make that call despite every fibre of her being screaming at her to do it.

She cries herself to sleep.

*

**2019**

The wound still hurts, still oozes with regret and it’s always going to be there, a scar that’ll remind of her what could’ve been.

2019 is the year she tries to move forward, pushing through because getting over the heartbreak is just never going to happen. She starts dating, starts putting herself out there even though she’s absolutely terrified, and absolutely convinced that it’s going to amount to nothing.

For the second year in a row, she’s single on Valentine’s Day.

*

**2020**

This year she doesn’t just have a date; she has a girlfriend!

To celebrate Valentine’s Day, she takes the day off work, with J’onn kindly stepping in to take over so she can take her girl away for a long weekend to Chicago.

They go to Alex’s favorite food truck.

They watch the _Bulls_ annihilate the _Nets_.

They have sex. A lot of sex.

And, most excitingly, they leave the Windy City as fiancees.

*

**2021**

Valentine’s Day falls on a Sunday this year and they take the day of rest quite literally, spending the entire day in bed.

She's been married to her wife for close to three months now and Alex still can’t stop staring at her, still can’t believe that this wonderful woman said yes - and she’s fully aware that she’s going to spend the rest of her life in this state of disbelief.

And then there’s all the exciting things that are currently happening, too: the offer that’ve put in for a cute two storey house is almost certainly going to be accepted; the yard of said two storey house will finally enable them to get a canine companion; and, in the not too distant future, they’ll finally start thinking about having kids, something that they both want so much. It's hard to imagine life being any better, something that seemed so unlikely just some eighteen months ago.

Things had moved quickly, yes, but Alex had made sure to communicate her feelings, her wants, and her desires to ensure that things didn’t fall apart this time around. If things did fall apart? Her heart wouldn’t survive this time; there wouldn’t even be the faintest slither of whatever it was that had kept her going back then - she’d blown two chances; she was damn sure she wouldn’t be lucky third time around.

*

**2022**

Time’s precious, every second counts yet the little lady is not cooperating.

Alex is not too proud to beg. ‘Please baby. Please do this for me?’ She’s been planning this for weeks, and she wants it to be perfect.

However, the two year old German Shepherd just doesn’t seem to understand the concept of Valentine’s Day, wriggling free every time her mom attempts to put the _Will You Be My Mommy’s Valentine?_ t-shirt on her.

‘You’ll look great in it.’

Gertrude tilts her head, skeptical.

‘Okay fine, you’ll look kinda stupid but your mama is going to love it, I promise. She’s going to give you all the kisses.’

It’s still not enough as Gertrude knows that, t-shirt or no t-shirt, she’s still going to get _all the kisses_.

Alex has nothing left except to resort to bribery. ‘I’ll take you to the pet store tomorrow and I’ll buy you whatever you want.’

That phrase Gertrude does seem to understand and she looks a little more convinced.

Alex seals the deal with treats from her pocket and manages, finally, to dress the dog and attach a card to her collar too. She heads upstairs, Gertrude at her heels before she steps aside. ‘Go get mommy.’

Gertrude bursts into the bedroom.

Alex lingers outside.

‘What the...hey, whoa.’ Giggles ensue. ‘What the hell are you wearing...oh my god, Alex!’ More giggles. ‘Yes! Yes, I’ll be your Valentine!’

That’s Alex’s cue to enter, a bouquet of roses in her hand. ‘Thank god, otherwise this would’ve been awkward.’

‘Even more so since I’m your wife,’ said wife said as she gently eased the slobbering pooch off her before removing the envelope. ‘How the hell did you get her to wear this?’

‘Bribery.’ Alex perches herself on the edge of the bed and watches the smile spread as the words inside the card are read. ‘I love you so much.’

‘I love you more.’

‘Impossible,’ Alex grins before offering the roses. ‘These are for you.’

‘And they’re beautiful, thank you.’ A sniff of the bouquet was cut short by a coughing fit.

Alex’s heart skips a beat. In all the years she’s known her wife, she’s never known her to have any allergies, especially not to roses. ‘Are you okay?’

‘No. I...I think I...I have the black lung.’

Alex was undeterred by this revelation, and leans over to kiss Maggie. She then pulls away and grimaces. ‘Whoops. Guess I have it now too.’

‘You took the day off didn’t you?’

‘J’onn’s covering for me today, yes,’ Alex smiles. ‘What about you Captain Sawyer?’

‘My Sergeant has things covered.’ That’s a yes. She prods Alex’s arm. ‘This is your fault, you know. I never used to even celebrate Valentine’s Day and now I take the goddamn day off work.’

Alex shrugs. ‘It’s not my fault you looooooooooooove me.’

‘That I do, Danvers. That I do,’ Maggie nods. ‘So much so that I made a special reservation for us tonight.’

‘Where?’

‘Not telling. You’ll have to wait.’

So Alex does wait, but the wait is hardly excruciating when they spend the morning, and a good chunk of the afternoon too, in bed before showering together. In so many ways do Maggie’s lips remain loose but when it comes to the evening’s plans, they remain tight.

Alex has no idea where their cab’s headed but, really, she should have because the evening is an amalgamation of two previous Valentine’s Days, and the planned one that didn’t happen.

Maggie’s rented out an entire _In N’ Out_ just for them.


End file.
